Understanding Codicils: A Simple Guide to Amending Your Will
Learn what a codicil is, when to use one, and how it can help you update your will without creating an entirely new document. Essential information for singles, parents, and high net worth individuals.
Introduction
A codicil is a legal document that allows you to make minor changes or additions to your existing will without having to rewrite the entire document. Think of it as an amendment or supplement to your will. Codicils must be executed with the same formalities as a will (signed, dated, and witnessed) to be legally valid. Whether you're single without children, married with a family, or have substantial assets, understanding how and when to use a codicil can save you time and money while ensuring your final wishes are properly documented and legally binding.
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Key Things to Know
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A codicil must be executed with the same legal formalities as a will—signed, dated, and properly witnessed according to your state's laws—to be valid.
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Store your codicil with your original will to ensure they're found together when needed. Consider informing your executor about the existence of both documents.
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Multiple codicils can create confusion and increase the risk of contradictions or legal challenges. If you've already made several codicils, creating a new will may be clearer.
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Life events such as marriage, divorce, birth of children, or significant changes in assets should trigger a review of your will and consideration of whether a codicil is appropriate.
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For high net worth individuals, even small changes via codicil can have significant tax implications. Always consult with a tax professional or estate attorney before making changes.
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Digital assets (cryptocurrency, online accounts, digital files) are increasingly important to include in estate planning. Consider using a codicil to address these if they weren't in your original will.
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Self-created codicils using online templates carry higher risks of invalidity. The modest cost of professional legal assistance is usually worth the peace of mind, especially for valuable estates.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Codicil in Arizona, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Codicil guide walks through them.
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Arizona Requirements for Codicil
Testamentary Capacity (A.R.S. § 14-2501)
The testator must be of sound mind and memory, at least 18 years of age, and understand the nature of their property, the natural objects of their bounty, and the disposition they are making of their property.
Execution Requirements (A.R.S. § 14-2502)
A codicil must be in writing, signed by the testator (or by someone in the testator's conscious presence and at the testator's direction), and witnessed by at least two competent witnesses who sign the codicil within a reasonable time after witnessing the testator's signing.
Self-Proved Codicil (A.R.S. § 14-2504)
A codicil may be simultaneously executed, attested, and made self-proved by acknowledgment of the testator and affidavits of the witnesses, each made before an officer authorized to administer oaths under Arizona law and evidenced by the officer's certificate under official seal.
Holographic Codicil (A.R.S. § 14-2503)
A codicil that is entirely in the testator's handwriting is valid as a holographic codicil, whether or not witnessed, if the signature and material portions of the document are in the testator's handwriting.
Revocation by Writing or Act (A.R.S. § 14-2507)
A codicil or any part thereof is revoked by a subsequent will or codicil that revokes the prior will or part expressly or by inconsistency, or by performing a revocatory act on the codicil with the intent to revoke it.
Revival of Revoked Will (A.R.S. § 14-2509)
If a subsequent will or codicil that wholly revoked a previous will is thereafter revoked by a revocatory act, the previous will remains revoked unless it is revived.
Choice of Law (A.R.S. § 14-2506)
A written codicil is valid if executed in compliance with Arizona law at the time of execution, or the law of the place where the codicil was executed at the time of execution, or the law of the place where the testator was domiciled at the time of execution or at the time of death.
Incorporation by Reference (A.R.S. § 14-2510)
A writing in existence when a codicil is executed may be incorporated by reference if the language of the codicil manifests this intent and describes the writing sufficiently to permit its identification.
Events of Independent Significance (A.R.S. § 14-2512)
A codicil may dispose of property by reference to acts and events that have significance apart from their effect upon the dispositions made by the codicil, whether they occur before or after the execution of the codicil or before or after the testator's death.
Witness Competency (A.R.S. § 14-2505)
The signing of a codicil by an interested witness does not invalidate the codicil or any provision of it, but a devise to a witness is void to the extent that it exceeds what the witness would have received had the testator died intestate.
Antilapse Provision (A.R.S. § 14-2603)
If a devisee who is a grandparent or a lineal descendant of a grandparent of the testator is dead at the time of execution of the codicil, fails to survive the testator, or is treated as if predeceased the testator, the issue of the deceased devisee take in place of the deceased devisee.
Simultaneous Death (A.R.S. § 14-2702)
If the order of deaths of the testator and a beneficiary cannot be determined, the beneficiary is deemed to have predeceased the testator for purposes of the codicil, unless the codicil contains language dealing explicitly with simultaneous deaths or deaths in a common disaster.
Divorce or Annulment (A.R.S. § 14-2804)
Divorce or annulment of a marriage after the execution of a codicil revokes any disposition or appointment of property made by the codicil to the former spouse, unless the codicil expressly provides otherwise.
Ademption by Extinction (A.R.S. § 14-2606)
A specific devise fails if the property is not in the testator's estate at death, unless otherwise provided in the codicil or by statute.
Abatement (A.R.S. § 14-3902)
Abatement of devises occurs when the assets of the estate are insufficient to pay all devises in full, following a statutory order of abatement unless the codicil provides otherwise.
No-Contest Clause (A.R.S. § 14-2517)
A provision in a codicil purporting to penalize an interested person for contesting the codicil or instituting other proceedings relating to the estate is enforceable, subject to certain exceptions.
Testamentary Additions to Trusts (A.R.S. § 14-2511)
A codicil may validly devise property to the trustee of a trust established or to be established during the testator's lifetime or at death, if the trust is identified in the testator's will and its terms are set forth in a written instrument.
Uniform Probate Code Compliance (A.R.S. Title 14)
Arizona has adopted portions of the Uniform Probate Code, which provides standardized rules for the creation and execution of wills and codicils across states that have adopted it.
Federal Estate Tax Considerations (26 U.S.C. § 2001 et seq.)
Codicils should consider federal estate tax implications, including applicable exclusion amounts, marital deductions, and generation-skipping transfer tax provisions.
Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance (42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq.)
Accommodations may be necessary for testators with disabilities to ensure they can validly execute a codicil, including alternative signing methods or communication assistance.